Uncertainty & fear of homelessness loom large in Delhi's jhuggis

new delhi: The Supreme Court's decision to remove jhuggis in Delhi-NCR has left the slum dwellers in a fix as they already struggle with unemployment and post Covid lockdown woes. The order was passed on August 31 by Justice Arun Mishra, in connection with the piling up of the waste by the sides of railway tracks in Delhi.

However, the decision which is yet to determine the particular areas where the shanties will be demolished, have left those living near Kirti Nagar's railway tracks in anxiety. The majority of slum dwellers hail from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh and do meager jobs or are daily wage workers.

50-year-old Rama Shankar has been living at 8/36 jhuggi area for about 25 years. "We left our homes to live a better life here, but since then it has been a nightmare for us. The court's order has left us in fear as we have nowhere to go. Before this the court never intervened the way it did today. By saying that no political party can intervene, it has left us confused," he told Millennium Post.

Shankar who works in a private company said he came from Uttar Pradesh years back and has been living here ever since. "If they do want to remove us, why not give us a place to live? Where will we go with our kids who are already starving post Covid," he added.

"The encroachments in the safety zones should be removed within a period of three months and no interference, political or otherwise, should be there and no Court shall grant any stay with respect to removal of the encroachments in the area in question. In case any interim order is granted with respect to encroachments, which have been made along with railway tracks, that shall not be effective," the Supreme Court said in its decision.

Krishan said that the decision is a blow for them, as most of the youth in the area is struggling with unemployment and poverty. "I had lost my job due to the lockdown and have been sitting unemployed ever since. We have always been told that our shanties would be removed but never have we feared the decision so much. When the whole country is suffering from unemployment, why did the court make such a decision," he said.

People in the area told Millennium Post that railway officials had come and taken the measurement of the area before, but none of the residents have been told anything as of now.

There are more than 2,500 jhuggis in the area that stretches over Kirti Nagar, Azadpur Mandi, and Shakur Basti, all of which are located very near to the railway tracks. Most of the people had left for their homes on foot, during the migrant labourers exodus. "Since we came back have from home, we been sitting without jobs. Now, this is another blow to our sufferings," said Ravi.

The court's decision does not have the particulars about which jhuggis from what areas will be removed.